Sunday, December 14, 2008

The U.S. WNT spent Sunday in Los Angeles after defeating China on Saturday night, and will leave for Detroit on Monday morning to prepare for the match against China at Ford Field on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. ET. It will be the last game of the year for the USA and (thankfully) the first game indoors. It's in the 20s and 30s in Detroit, but of course Ford Field is one of them fancy new domed stadiums. The temps in Michigan represent at least a 20-30 degree drop from "winter" in California, but since the only time the team will have to be outside is going from the airport to the hotel, or the hotel to training and the game (as well as shopping, movies, Starbucks runs, etc.), the WNT players should be fine. The cold will bring back fond memories for Michigan natives Lindsay Tarpley and Kate Markgraf, who grew up in the state playing their youth soccer in chilly temps for part of the year. Tarpley said she has trained in the snow many, many times. Fortunately, she won't have to do that this week. The USA is hoping for a victory in front of the win-starved Detroit fans who haven't seen a "football" victory yet this season.

About U.S. Soccer

As the governing body of soccer in all its forms in the United States, U.S. Soccer has helped chart the course for the sport in the USA for more than 90 years. In this time, the Federation’s mission statement has been very simple and very clear: to make soccer, in all its forms, a preeminent sport in the United States and to continue the development of soccer at all recreational and competitive levels.